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These guys might look like monkeys but they're actually ringtail lemurs.
Lemur is derived from a latin word meaning ghost, because of their bright staring eyes and their hunting sounds - and because they like going for night-time walks! People used to think they were spirits from the afterlife.
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If you look at their tails, it's easy to see why they're called ringtail lemurs.
They're beautiful, but more importantly, they're used as a very clever method of communication.
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Ringtail lemurs spend a lot of time on the ground - but they've only got short little legs.
When they're in long grass, it's easy for them to get separated from the rest of their group.
A lone lemur won't survive for very long...
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So to enable the lemurs to see where they all are, they stick their tails up high - so that they poke out above the long grass.
The tail can also be used to fend off others. The lemur produces can fatty gunge from
a special gland. When they feel the need to, they can scoop this gunge onto their tails and flick it at any rivals! |
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And - lemurs can also talk to each other!
Not with anything like human speech, but they do have over fifteen different calls, each of which has a different purpose. The calls include one with which they call their young, an alarm call, and one for calling the group together!
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